Besic embraces rewarding experience in sharing home country with teammates

A student-athlete's collegiate career can be easily measured in wins, losses, points per game, and other countable statistics.  
 
However, over the course of those four or five years, a student-athlete doesn’t just contribute layups, rebounds, blocks, or steals to their team; they give a part of their self to the program that helps define the team through each trial or tribulation.
 
As the Keyano Huskies Women’s Basketball team prepares for the 2024-25 Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) season, Marijana Besic is giving that part of herself to her teammates new and old this month in Serbia. It's a chance to experience basketball from the perspective of her home country and understanding the level she holds herself at to be among the top talents on the Huskies and in ACAC Women's Basketball. 
 
The trip, which includes an educational element on women in business and sport, takes place in the backdrop of a basketball-crazed country that has been put on the map by last names like Perazić, Jokić, and Divac, among many others. 
 
“It feels incredibly rewarding and exciting to share my home country with my teammates,” Besic said. “There's a deep sense of pride in being able to introduce them to the rich culture, history, and traditions of Serbia, especially in my hometown of Pancevo.  

“Watching them experience our national dance, taste our traditional dishes, and learn about our customs brings me a lot of joy. It's also a special way to strengthen our bond as a team, as they get to see where I come from and understand more about my background.”  

Besic has more than delivered on the court for the Huskies. After totaling 149 points as a rookie in 2019-20, she finished first and second in team scoring the past two seasons, respectively. She’s also led the team in rebounds in back-to-back years, missing just one game in that time frame.  
 
Besic isn’t the first student-athlete from Serbia to bring their skills to the ACAC, but she’s done so with a passion and drive that puts her among the best to don a jersey for the Basketball Huskies.  
 
“Marijana has been an essential player within our program over the past five years,” Head Coach Dwayne Vigilance said. “She brings a wealth of international experience from her youth playing days for her country and growth as a leader has been extremely vital to this year’s group.  
 
“Her growth as a person has been fun to watch. If anyone knows Marijana, you know you’re going to have a friend and teammate that with honest and loyal to you for life. This is the fabric of what we try to implement within our program.” 
 
That openness is what allows a trip like this to have its intended effect where the Huskies not only travel through the country and Besic’s hometown of Pančevo, but gain a deeper understanding of what drives Besic to succeed and the culture that has shaped her into the person that has helped shaped the Huskies culture for the last half decade.  

“I hope that my teammates gain a deeper appreciation for the diversity of cultures around the world,” she added. “By immersing themselves in Serbian traditions and history, I hope they realize the importance of understanding and respecting different cultures.  
 
“I also want them to see that while we may come from different places, there are universal values like community, hospitality, and teamwork that connect us all.”